Pioneer Village

On Friday we took a little family outing and headed to Salt Lake to visit the "Historic Pioneer Village" and the "This Is The Place" Monument. We had such a lovely day together and I loved visiting all the pioneer houses.

This is the first picture as we entered the village. The weather was absolutely perfect!

Washing clothes - pioneer style

Inside one of the houses. It was actually one of the largest houses with an upstairs. Dave could barely stand up straight because the ceilings were so low.

Dave had to get a picture of me with the kids in front of the Relief Society Hall :)

One of the first banks in Utah. I got these pictures for you - Dad

I love the rifle out for everyone to see. These banks got robbed a lot!

Old "Mormon Money"

The closest thing Maddie could get to a mall!

Picking out prizes in the general store

The prizes...

Running to catch the train

Beautiful view of the Salt Lake Valley

"Native American Village"

Chairs the Indians would make so they could sit inside their tee pees

Getting tired already!

The Drug Store. We wanted to get some Advil but they didn't have any :)

At the Millinery Shop we got to try on a lot of neat hats

I had to get a picture of Bronson in front of the first "Deseret News" building to remind us of our newspaper delivery days!

Next stop - Pony Rides!

Maddie and Talbie were too old to ride the ponies but they made the weight cut so they were able to get an exciting (NOT!) ride.

Then we stopped by the Tithing Office - to make candles :)

Family Portrait

Mary Fielding Smith's home. I loved this quaint little cabin/house. After Hyrum Smith was killed, Mary Fielding Smith came to Salt Lake. She became a plural wife to Heber C. Kimball - so she could become independent! In the 1840's women couldn't own land if they weren't married. Mary was given a city plot to build a house on but she wanted to be self-sufficient so she built this house with her boys outside the city. She was an amazing woman!

We made dolls at Mary Fielding's house

Our dolls

We had a great time. We got a picture of the monument on our way out. If you haven't been to visit this wonderful historic village, I suggest you take the time to do it! You could almost spend 2 days there because there is so much to see.

Happy Father's Day

I saw this video on a friend's blog and it's a perfect Father's Day Message. I am speaking in Sacrament Meeting on Father's Day, first in my dad's ward where he is the bishop (this was supposed to be a surprise but he found out about it) and then in my ward.

I've been thinking a lot about fathers this week and I can't express how thankful I am for my dad and my wonderful husband. I have been blessed beyond measure to have them be a part of my life. Watch this wonderful video and thank the father's in your life for all they do for you!

House of Cards

I have been really bad at keeping my blog up lately. I blame it on Bronson and Talbie who have hijacked my camera and keep making their own "movies." I did manage to get some pictures off my camera this morning...

Bronson has an obsession with building card houses and has for years. He hasn't built any in quite awhile but he started back up again this week...

Spelling his name out in Uno card!

UP

We went and saw "UP" yesterday and we weren't disappointed. It was a cute show and very touching. Go see it!

Emmie and Kaye

Bronson, Tommy, and Brock

Logan and Talbie

Brittany, Dallin, and Grandma

Megan's Wedding and Post #600!

This is my 600th post on my blog...

Yesterday was Gus and Megan's wedding. It was a beautiful day at the Salt Lake Temple and we had a great time together at the reception that night

Megan and Gus as they came out of the temple

The Morris Family. Lynn (Dave's sister) putting some last minute touches on Megan's hair

The family with Grandma's
The reception that night was at the Cougar Room at BYU
My kids before the reception startedEmmie enjoying some cake before everyone got there

Maddie and Abi were the bridesmaids. They were the life of the party!

Goofing off - not manning their posts!

More goofing off!

A little more serious

Maddie finally at her spot at the guest book

Emmie and Grandma Pat

Brittany's family, my dad, and Talbie and Bronson. Bronson and Emmie were bored after the first 15 minutes. Luckily my parents came close to the beginning of the reception so they could bring them home with them.

Talbie and Grandma Knowles

The happy couple cutting the cake

Talbie didn't catch the bouquet but she did snag a rose that flew out of it!

The last hour of the reception was a dance. This is Abi and Maddie trying to get the dance started. It was so much fun when it was in full swing!

Here's a video of some of Megan, Maddie, and Talbie's moves :)
Talbie is a little more timid than Maddie. Usually when I have the camera on, my kids stop doing what they're doing. Listen in this video and you'll hear Maddie say, "Mom - video me!" She's an odd duck but she makes me laugh so hard :)

Swimming Lessons

Emmie is my baby and my only child still in swimming lessons. This makes me feel so old. I'm proud of her because she is in a class that is way too hard for her but she is working so hard at learning all her strokes and trying to swim the length of the pool. She keeps saying, "I wish I lived in Texas so I could practice my swimming everyday!" (Her cousin Ember has a pool!) I will need to be sure to get her to the pool a lot this summer after her lessons are over.

Logan, Dallin, and Emmie

Golf Workshop

The first 2 days of summer (Monday and Tuesday), Bronson and Brock took a Jr. Workshop at the golf course by our house. It was really fun for them and the first time they've really tried anything like this. The workshop ended yesterday but they also got a pass for 6 rounds of golf (9 holes), 8 buckets of balls to hit on the driving range, and 2 passes for 18 holes of golf. It's going to be a fun summer of golf for these two.

Their friends from our neighborhood were also in the class, which made it fun!

Sweet Talbie

I just have to brag for a minute about Talbie. She is the most charitable person I think I've ever met. She loves to do things for other people and the "catch" is that she's always so cheerful as she's doing it.

A month before summer started, she volunteered to help at the local movie theater. She goes once a week for a 4-5 hour shift, while they play the movies that all the kids can come to. It's 100% volunteer and she gets paid nothing to do it.

Then, she also wanted to volunteer at the care center down the street from our house and yesterday was her first day to do this. She went and helped the ladies with crafts and did manicures. She came home so chipper and told me about each of the ladies and about the lives they've had.

She is such an inspiration to me and I hope her desire to serve stays strong throughout her entire life. As school was ending, she was telling me how busy she was going to be this summer (serving) and now she has been blessed with some great babysitting jobs too so she will be earning some money to supplement her school clothes shopping :)